She built a career on targeting Trump – and now New York Attorney General Letitia James is embroiled in a criminal investigation of her own. But the real irony lies in what she allegedly did: misrepresenting the nature of real estate holdings. Sound familiar?
The Case Against Letitia James
The Department of Justice has officially opened a criminal investigation into Letitia James this week. At the same time, Washington’s biggest paper reported that a grand jury in the Eastern District of Virginia sent out subpoenas related to a property she bought there in 2023.
In mid-April, Liberty Nation News Editor-in-Chief Mark Angelides reported the initial criminal referral and set the scene: “In what could be seen as an ironic twist of fate, New York Attorney General Letitia James has been hit with claims that she falsified statements relating to mortgage applications to get preferential rates.”
William Pulte, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), brought three claims against NY AG James in a letter to US AG Pam Bondi. According to Pulte, Ms. James falsified records on a property in Virginia in 2023 by stating it was her principal residence when it wasn’t, consistently misrepresented a five-dwelling property in Brooklyn as only having four units, and listed her father in 1983 and 2000 as her husband and co-signer on property documents. All this to qualify for loans or to get better rates, allegedly.
Now, Letitia James is actively being investigated by the FBI and may soon face state-level fraud charges in Virginia. As well, pro-Trump legal nonprofit America First Legal (AFL) filed an ethics complaint with the New York State Unified Court System’s Committee on Professional Standards in late April. Their argument is that, if Ms. James is guilty of the behavior she’s accused of, then the Committee and the New York State Bar Association are obligated to conduct their own investigation, regardless of the outcome of the criminal case, as lawyers are forbidden from engaging in “illegal conduct” that might affect their honesty and trustworthiness.
People in Glass Houses …
What’s so ironic about that? AG James brought charges against Donald Trump over similar supposed offenses. He was ultimately found guilty of fraud and other forms of misrepresentation regarding the value of his properties and fined more than $450 million. Trump, of course, maintained his innocence throughout the case and is currently appealing it. Similarly, Ms. James claims that she has committed no crimes and that the case against her is unfounded.
So, is it just a witch hunt, so to speak, or might there be merit to the allegations against her? According to Mr. Pulte’s letter to AG Bondi, Ms. James bought a home in Norfolk, VA, in August of 2023 – while she was serving as and running for re-election for New York attorney general. Clearly, that house would not be her primary residence. Yet she submitted loan forms claiming it was. Her attorney, Abbe Lowell, who recently defended Hunter Biden, said this was a mistake and that other forms did not list it as her principal residence. It would seem, however, that she got the preferential rate, mistake or no.
But how credible is the claim that it was an accident? Mistakes happen, sure. But as an attorney herself, James should know the difference and should know how to fill out legal documents. What’s worse, this alleged clerical mistake took place while she was prosecuting Donald Trump for fraud, of all things. Still, despite all that, one might be tempted to give her the benefit of the doubt – if only it weren’t for the other allegations.
There’s also the case of the four-dwelling/five-dwelling confusion. According to FHFA Director Pulte, Letitia James bought a property in Brooklyn with five dwellings on it. But when she applied for her loan through the Home Affordable Modification Program – and again later when she refinanced through Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in 2019 – she listed it as a four-dwelling property. You see, those programs only cover buildings with four or fewer dwelling units.
Lowell refuted this claim, saying the updated documentation showed the property to have just four units. He called the referral for criminal investigation a “stunning hypocrisy” on Trump’s part and an obvious retaliation for his client’s various cases against Mr. Trump. But what of the third allegation, that Ms. James had her father co-sign mortgage applications in 1980 and 2000 as her husband? If that actually happened, there’s no writing it off as a slip of the mind or an outdated form.
Taken all together, it certainly seems credible enough to warrant a deeper look – which is all that’s happening right now. She hasn’t been charged with anything as of yet, nor has she been fired or disbarred, or anything like that. But if the investigation turns up sufficient evidence that she committed criminal fraud – or even just behaved unethically – it could mean the end of her career and maybe even her freedom. It also serves as a poignant reminder that people in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones – and what bigger, more prominently displayed house of glass could one move into than the New York Attorney General’s Office set on convicting a US president of whatever legal spaghetti manages to stick to the wall?
